Official websites use. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites. Hannah R. Email: Hannah. Marston open. Social connectedness, sex, and intimacy are all factors associated with positive aging, facing individuals in society across the life course.
Phenomenal technological developments in the 21st century have led to the increased use of smartphones, mobile apps, and dating apps for a myriad of services, and engagements. Keywords: intimacy, older adults, life-limited conditions, loneliness, young adults, privacy issues, social isolation, loneliness, aging, sexuality. Relationships vary and change, and for some people, these connections can be caring and loving, while for others they may involve adultery, abuse physical, emotional, and mental and differences of opinion, leading to separation, divorce, or other forms of relationship breakdown or transitions.
Furthermore, relationships may be cut short due to illness or an unexpected death. The structure of this position paper includes an overview of sex, intimacy and sexuality from the standpoint of the two populations, an overview of existing dating apps, coupled with a discussion surrounding the challenges and enablers to using dating apps in contemporary society. We conclude by proposing a series of future work, and recommendations for moving this body of work forward.
This position paper primarily explores how dating apps impact the lives of people in the context of the UK, taking a life course perspective Elder, ; Green, ; Hutchinson, , in particular focusing on older adults and young disabled adults with life-limiting or life-threatening conditions, who may be socially isolated, lonely, and have limited experience and knowledge of using dating apps.
We position the benefits of using dating apps within these two populations, while also identifying potential issues and concerns of dating apps with individuals who are, or could be perceived as, vulnerable. We discuss the existing literature within the fields of sex, intimacy, sexuality, and dating apps, followed by a brief overview of various dating apps, and possible risks associated to dating apps by vulnerable users who are unfamiliar with this mode of engagement.
